Partnering with donors to help end poverty

ABOVE: Children International President and CEO Susana Eshleman (center) traveled to Guatemala recently with a group of social investors (featured right), who met a graduate of Children International and his family (pictured left). 

A few times a year, I travel the world with groups of Children International donors, who we refer to as social investors. I love these trips, because they are usually life-changing for those who join me in the field and see firsthand how their giving is creating lasting impact. My guests consistently come away with a new and inspiring level of appreciation for how their contributions unleash the children and youth we serve into promising futures. 

These investors are usually blown away by the significant need in the communities we serve and in the conditions in which the children, youth and families live. They also are blown away by the transformative power and comprehensiveness of our programs. We offer support in the areas of health, education, empowerment through life skills development, and employment. Something else that’s really hard to convey on paper, but very easy to see when you’re in the field is how Children International really creates community, encouragement, value and hope, through the way we implement our program. There is something almost magical — honestly, seemingly impossible — that happens when children and youth are supported and encouraged during their first two critical decades of life to dream about futures that they have never before considered possible.

Children International donors (also known as social investors) were grateful for the opportunity to visit with caregivers of some participating youth. 

The donors get to witness children going from being victims of their circumstances to empowered actors of their future, who have a great desire and the ability to pay it forward. 

This happened most recently on a trip to Children International’s agency in Guatemala. The eight social investors who joined me met the passionate and committed staff and witnessed the life-changing power of the CI system on the ground. Words don’t serve me well to describe what seeing this in action feels like, but one can’t help being reminded and deeply encouraged by the resilience of the human spirit and what we can make possible when we work together to invest in children, youth and their families.   

On a trip filled with highlights, an especially memorable moment occurred when we had lunch with seven young adults who completed our programs and are now in their 20s and 30s. Their professions range from an elementary school principal and a radio station anchor to entrepreneurs in industries connected to costume design and catering. They all participated in Children International’s capstone program called Into Employment®, which equipped them with the technical, life and job search skills to find sustainable work. Up to 80% of the graduates of this program find a job within six months of completion and are able to double or triple their household income. Our system of transformation for children and youth is very powerful, and Into Employment is the game changer that lifts them out of poverty — creating positive ripple effects through future generations of their families and in their communities. 

Children International graduates who are thriving in their careers enjoyed lunch with Susana and the social investors who joined her in Guatemala, including Board Chair Adam Newsome (far left). 

Because these graduates are breaking the cycle of poverty with support from Children International, their sons and daughters will not need our program. They shared a burning desire to pay it forward and described how they are mentoring current Children International participants and volunteering in their local communities. 

Our social investors left that luncheon speechless and most inspired. These young people embodied our ultimate organizational goal — a confident young person equipped with the mindset, tools and skills to achieve their goals, to be sustainably employed and to be a positive multiplier of good in their community. Our mission promise is to multiply good in the world. I never get tired of seeing the proof of how that is happening. It is such a privilege and honor to be part of a system of people — children, youth, their families, staff, in-country volunteers and social investors — who come together to make it happen.